Empress Cyrlis
Daughter of Empress Talis and granddaughter of the great Evestin Tir'Sen Cyrlis was a ruler whom brought much misery and destruction to the Empire. *Preceded by Empress Talis *Succeeded by Empress Darlis =Appearance= Medium height, blond(dyed white) and blue eyed woman whom always wore white robes, often lined by golden thread. =Biography= From a young age Cyrlis had been recruited into the ranks of "The Eternity" and was proclaimed a "Disciple of the Eternal Mother", Talis considering this a childhood fad saw no need to repress it until it was too late. As a Disciple Cyrlis customarily dyed her hair white and wore only white robes, a tradition which she continued to follow even as Empress. And so on her coronation she decreed "The Eternity" as the official Imperial religion and all others were as of then banned. Although The Eternity had been the primary religion of the Empire since its founding, and in fact a great force in its favor, Cyrlis sought to create a more radical incarnation of this religion. Those practicing alternate religions were slain, books were burned, and rumors spread that the Empress was considering starting a holy war against the Illuthai. The public reaction was mixed though in general violent as mobs formed throughout the Empire either protesting or supporting the new act which according to critics "repressed the people's free will". Once again the border Kingdoms revolted in an explosion of fire and ash though after a short conflict a tenuous peace was restored. Temples of the "Eternals" sprung up in all major cities and even in the countryside as the worshippers of the "official" religion flexed their newfound powers. Eventually however this became too much for the people of the Empire and the first Imperial Civil War erupted four years later effectively tearing the Empire in two. The 19th legion lead several others to openly declare against the Empress, they had brought down a false ruler before, why couldn't they again? Within a month the entire Empire was at open war with itself. Nobles, peasants and soldiers alike were split between the two sides mercilessly killing all in their way. Eventually those defending the Empress and her regime were pushed back to the Capital where all that was left of the Loyalist forces gathered. As the reformists gathered for the final push a man mounted the walls with a flag. The city guard had surrendered. Eventually, as her most diehard supporters fell about her, Cyrlis gave up. Much to the shock of all around her she tore off her white white robes and Imperial regalia. Naked, she stood before the soldiers forcing their way into the room and said: "I have let myself be ruled by my own subjects. I am not worthy of my title, position, or the Eternal Mother's gaze". She then drove a dagger into her chest. Fortunately the dagger missed her heard and lung by inches; deflected by a rib. After significant healing she made two further attempts at suicide and eventually decided that her patron goddess wanted her to live out her life as punishment. A year later she had only one daughter and suddenly died in her sleep only a decade afterwards. Category: Kaile Category: The Haram Empire Category: Kailean Characters